All of the aforementioned represent the pinnacle of German performance motoring. But there's another member of this club that, until recently, had taken a lower-profile approach to things: Audi Sport.

In the modern era of motorsports, there are few organizations that have had as much success as Audi Sport, from the heights of the World Rally Championships and the iconic Audi Quattro to the grueling 24 hours of the Le Mans endurance sports-car race. At Le Mans, Audi's racing prototypes lost just twice during a 15-year stretch between 2000 and 2014.

In spite of its on-the-track dominance, Audi Sport hasn't become the marketing juggernaut like its fellow German performance brands. This is especially the case in the realm of production cars, where AMG, M Sport, and Porsche are household names.

"We spent so much on the authenticity of Audi Sport and the racing of Audi Sport that we forgot to commercialize Audi Sport and take advantage of the success we've had," Scott Keogh, president of Audi of America, told us in a 2016 interview. "Our competitors have done a smart job of putting more focus into turning out more M cars and AMGs."

A couple of years ago, Audi decided to finally cash in on its racing success through a new line of Audi Sport-produced, high-performance models bearing the "R" and "RS" monikers.

In the United States, the most affordable way to get your hands on one of Audi Sport's hot rod RS cars is the Audi RS3. We were fortunate enough to spend a week with the Teutonic speedster earlier this year.

The 2018 Audi RS3 2.5T quattro S tronic sedan starts at $54,900 in the US. With options, our test car, dressed in a flashy Catalunya Red metallic paint job, left the showroom with an as-tested price of $66,775.

Here's a closer look at the Audi RS3 sedan:

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The Audi RS3 debuted for the 2017 model year and is based on the brand's successful ...

Benjamin Zhang/Business Insider

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... A3 sedan.

Audi

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It's also a step up from the mid-grade Audi S3 sedan, which was a finalist for Business Insider's 2015 Car of the Year Award.

The screen is home to Audi's award-winning, reconfigurable virtual cockpit system.

Audi's MMI is arguably the best infotainment system we've ever encountered. It's an opinion we've held for the past few years. Even though the screen size is far from industry-leading, MMI is attractively rendered, highly intuitive to use, and packed with features.

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The system is controlled using a center console-mounted rotary dial complete with a touchpad and handwriting-recognition technology.

Audi

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The screen can also be retracted at the push of a button.

Benjamin Zhang/Business Insider

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The RS3 is also loaded with a host of available luxury, safety, and tech features.

In the US, the standard A3 is powered by a 2.0-liter, 220-horsepower, turbocharged inline-four cylinder, while the racier S3 gets a 292-horsepower version of the same engine. Both models are also available with the quattro all-wheel drive and a six-speed S tronic transmission.

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According to Audi, the RS3 can make the run from 0-60 mph in just 3.9 seconds with an artificially limited top speed of 155 mph. The top speed limiter can be raised to 174 mph if you option the $4,800 Dynamic plus package.

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The Dynamic plus package also comes with ceramic front brakes and a special RS-tuned sports suspension in place of the standard magnetic ride system.

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So, what's it like to drive?

Benjamin Zhang/Business Insider

The Audi RS3 is truly impressive. Its steering is quick and communicative, while its chassis and suspension are tuned to deliver sports-car-like stiffness without the dreaded bone-jarring ride.

The RS3 is quick and nimble around corners. Apart from some minor understeer, it feels perfectly balanced at all times.

The free-revving turbo-five cylinder delivers instantaneous power across its broad power band. The engine reaches its peak torque of 354 pounds-feet at just 1,700 RPMs and maintains this output all the way up to 5,850 RPMs.

Paired with the quick-shifting seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, the RS3 launches off the line like a crazed animal seeing the red mist. Acceleration is immediate, and power delivery holds steady as the RS3 works its way through the gears.

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Our verdict.

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The Audi RS3 is simply astounding. It's brilliant not just as a performance machine, but also as a compact luxury sedan. It's both a predatory animal lurking in the tall grasses, ready to pounce at a moment's notice, and a warm comforting friend.

We were blown away by the S3's style, comfort, and performance back in 2015. With the RS3, Audi and Audi Sport have simply taken thing to the next level.